Project Change Control Methodology: A Comprehensive Report

This report presents a comprehensive project change control methodology, essential for effective project management. It outlines the procedures and policies for approving, validating, and implementing changes, including the creation of a change control plan. The report details the structure and conduct of change control meetings, emphasizing communication with stakeholders, and defines the levels of authority for change authorization. Furthermore, it explores the role of Project Management Information Systems (PMIS) in tracking and controlling changes, providing examples such as Trello. The methodology emphasizes the importance of a Change Advisory Board (CAB) and the use of technology to manage projects efficiently. The report concludes by highlighting the importance of change control for successful project outcomes and provides references for further study.

Running head: PROJECT CHANGE CONTROL METHODOLOGY
PROJECT CHANGE CONTROL METHODOLOGY
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PROJECT CHANGE CONTROL METHODOLOGY
Table of Contents
Introduction:...................................................................................................................2
The methodology:..........................................................................................................2
Change control procedures and policies:...................................................................2
Change control plan:..................................................................................................2
Change control meetings and communication:..........................................................3
The levels of authority for reviewing/approving/implementing changes:.................4
Project management information systems (PMIS):...................................................4
Conclusion:....................................................................................................................5
References:.....................................................................................................................6

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Introduction:
While progressing in a project there is a certain project plan created and followed
from the beginning to the end of the project which is pre-planned by the team. But due to
certain circumstances it is often observed that a project gets delayed and maintain the initial
project plan that was created. Major or minor risks create a barrier in the project sometimes in
the initial stages or may be in the middle stage or at the last stage in the project (Hornstein,
2015).This change in the project plan initiates the Change Control Plan which guides a
project in the process of change. This report discusses about the procedure and
implementations of the Change Control Plan.
The methodology:
Change control procedures and policies:
After the risk is being identified during the stages of the project proceedings, the need
for change in the project plan is initiated on the basis of information and data that supports
the changing request. The change is generated after the change is positively considered by the
project manager. The project manager forwards the issue to the stakeholders in the form of
document known as the Change proposal which is an explanation of the drawbacks. After the
Review process where all the changes are researched and investigated carefully is approved
and has to be implied in the system (Narayanaswamy, Grover & Henry, 2013). Then the
change approval is counter signed by all the stakeholders and the project manager. The report
is validated by the stake holders and is approved for the positive change implementation.
Change control plan:
The change request is defined by the project team to the project manager. The
identification of the change is the most important and vital part of the change control plan

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process. The positive change is described to the project manager. The project manager then
describes the facts that will leave positive impact on the project to the head of the
organization or the stakeholders. After reviewing the change that is needed to be done the
change request is forwarded to the stakeholders. Once the change request is accepted it is
documented to the project team. The project team is asked to define options and create a new
response document(Crawford, 2014). The final stage consists of the final decision or the
approval of the change. The whole control plan is managed by the project manager who
focuses on the positive effect of the new change that is being implemented. The whole
process consists of Change process, review, reason for change, report submission, change
implementation, result and documentation.
Change control meetings and communication:
Developing a Change Advisory Board is the most important step to conduct Control
meeting to communicate with the project team. The change advisory board comprises of the
organization heads and the stakeholders (Nelson et al., 2013).The project manager is always
answerable to the stakeholders for describing them the positive impact that the change in the
project will leave on the project.The primary step consists of the identification of the area that
has to be changed in the project. After the identification of the problem by the team working
on the project the required change is demonstrated to the project leader. Hence the change
advisory board is requested for change control meeting by the project manager. in the
meeting the head of the boards and the project manager demonstrates the change to the
stakeholder(Aarons, Ehrhart, Farahnak, & Hurlburt, 2015). The meeting can be conducted
either on telephone or in physical existence. The main aim will be to convince the
stakeholders regarding the change. Once the stakeholder approves the change the change
control board approves the change to the team working on the project through a general
meeting.

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The levels of authority for reviewing/approving/implementing changes:
The term levels of authority means the authorized persons who are in charge of
certain levels in an organization. The change control plan in a project involves various levels
of authority and their concern for propagating certain changes that will create an impact on
the project. The major or minor change that is identified in the project and needs a change
proposal is under the authority level of the project team or the experts working on the project.
After the change proposal is made, the review process comes in action. For the review
process the team leader or the project manager in consulted by the team explaining the need
of change(Cole & Grossman, 2018).The project manager then requires the permission of the
change advisory board for conducting a meeting with the stake holders that requires their
concern for the change. The level of authority indulged in the reviewing process is the project
manager, stake holders and the project sponsors. The stakeholders are in charge of approving
or denying or a second time review. After the review gets approved the project manager
updates the information to the team for implementation.
Project management information systems (PMIS):
A project management information system is the organization that compiles projects
successfully. It is basically a software application that comprises of methodical process for
collection of project information and utilizing them in a correct manner. The Project
Management Information System is used for tracking the effective management information
system. This provides the information for making decisions on the planning
methodology(Tromp & Homan, 2015).The technology initiates and organizes the operations
for the subsystems. It also controls the operation that provides a synopsis to the process. The
Change Advisory Board faced difficulties in managing huge number of projects that are sent
for change request. The PMIS is a solution to such problems.

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For example we can consider a very renowned software technology that is named as
TRELLO. TRELLO is software that helps in compiling projects and schedules the
management process. It helps is organizing the projects and manages the scattered data in a
single unit for different number of projects in an organization. It reduces the pressure of the
Change Advisory Board and also reduces the probability of errors regarding management of a
project.The actual dates of completion and the costs are compared with targets(Ray, 2016).
The entire project’s progress is estimated for each activity in the entire project. It produces
forecasts of resources that are necessary for getting a project back on track.
Conclusion:
It can be concluded in this report that the change control plan for the projects is an
essential part of project management domain. The methodology of the change control process
is determined. Minor or major changes can be needed for reconstructing the project. This
reports states the procedures that are generally followed for the change control management.
The change control plan and the meetings conducted for the control plan are discussed along
with the levels of authority that maintains the plan level. The use and importance of PMIS in
the control plan is also discussed.

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References:
Aarons, G. A., Ehrhart, M. G., Farahnak, L. R., &Hurlburt, M. S. (2015). Leadership
and organizational change for implementation (LOCI): a randomized mixed method pilot
study of a leadership and organization development intervention for evidence-based practice
implementation. Implementation Science, 10(1), 11.
Cole, D. H., & Grossman, P. Z. (2018). When is command-and-control efficient? Institutions,
technology, and the comparative efficiency of alternative regulatory regimes for
environmental protection. In The Theory and Practice of Command and Control in
Environmental Policy (pp. 115-166). Routledge.
Crawford, J. K. (2014). Project management maturity model. Auerbach Publications.
Hornstein, H. A. (2015). The integration of project management and organizational change
management is now a necessity. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2),
291-298.
Narayanaswamy, R., Grover, V., & Henry, R. M. (2013). The impact of influence tactics in
information system development projects: A control-loss perspective. Journal of
Management Information Systems, 30(1), 191-226.
Nelson, J. E., Curtis, J. R., Mulkerin, C., Campbell, M., Lustbader, D. R., Mosenthal, A.
C.,&Brasel, K. J. (2013). Choosing and using screening criteria for palliative care
consultation in the ICU: a report from the Improving Palliative Care in the ICU
(IPAL-ICU) Advisory Board. Critical care medicine, 41(10), 2318-2327.
Ray, N. (2016). Prioritize, Plan, and Maintain Motivation with Trello. The Agricultural
Education Magazine, 88(6), 16.

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Tromp, J. W., & Homan, T. (2015). How unplanned changes emerge while implementing a
Project Management Information System (PMIS) in a complex multi project R&D
environment. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 194, 211-220.
.